Two Clans to a T
by tearthgrrl
Summary: T's aunt and uncle from her original clan wonder into the Pridelands one day and run into the Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. Full summary inside! More OC's added! Rated T for later chapters. Currenly being rewritten!
1. It's Tough Fitting In

I finally get a chance to start rewriting this story! Hopefully it will turn out a lot better than its previous condition.

Anyway, here's the full summary: T's aunt and uncle from her original clan wonder into the Pridelands and run into the trio. When they find out T's not dead they are completely surprised and they want to take her back to the clan with them.

Fooled by Shenzi and Ed's fake happiness, T reluctantly agrees to go. (Although she seems a bit uneasy, _especially around her uncle_) THEN T finds out that not all the members of her clan were killed by the humans and some familiar faces she knows emerge. Will she stay with her old clan? Or go back to the trio? R+R!

Also, a couple of cheetahs appear in this chapter from the Timon and Pumbaa TV series, Cheetahto (Chi-ta-toe) and Cheetayta (Chi-tay-tah, yeah, you were right Alyssa). Enjoy!

* * *

Shenzi, Banzai and Ed were scouting their clan's territory for food on a particularly hot and arid day. T had been left back at the cave because it was her turn to clean the place up and arrange it for when the trio got back with the meal. Although the current season had not made finding food successful; it was near summer and most of the herds had migrated to the northern parts of Africa to escape the heat.

"I think I saw a herd over this way." Shenzi stated as she and her two male friends treaded through the plains to reach a hill overlooking the grasslands. The now somewhat harsh climate had already tinted the tall grass a golden color, and it looked more like wheat than African shrubbery, which gripped onto the fur easier than its former, greener state. Upon reaching the peak of the hill though, the hyenas were not pleased at what their eyes beheld.

"Population: 0." The Kenyan matriarch stated disappointedly. Ed's ears drooped in discontent as the hollow feeling in his stomach lingered, this was about halfway close to his former state back in Scar's reign; near starving and miserable. Banzai grunted in annoyance; this was the fifth time this week their hunts hadn't been successful. Shenzi sighed.

"Well, might as well go home." She stated. Ed followed her as she walked back in the direction of their cave.

"Banzai let's go." Shenzi commanded when she saw he wasn't with them. No answer came however. She and Ed looked around for their friend.

"Banzai?"

"Guys, get over here!" Came a voice to Shenzi and Ed's right. The two hyenas exchanged glances before running in the direction of their friend. The two soon found Banzai in the middle of a thick patch of half-dead grass, looking at something on the ground.

"What is it?" Shenzi asked. Banzai smirked as he pointed to what lay beneath him.

"I think I just found our lunch." Shenzi and Ed looked in the direction he was pointing in, and their eyes widened at the sight of a large, waterbuck carcass. It looked fresh too.

"Chow time!" Shenzi and Banzai yelled in unison. Ed laughed in his usual happy tone for the first time in days and the trio dug into the carcass. They'd leave just enough to fill T up though, when they took it back to the cave. Soon they had three haunches cleaned off to the bone.

"Oh yeah." Banzai contentedly sighed after finishing off his haunch, smacking his lips. Shenzi also licked her lips, although a little less sloppily than her male counterpart, when she had finished off her meal too. Ed just laughed insanely after he swallowed down some of his.

Suddenly, the trio heard rustling. They looked at the golden colored tall grass behind them, but nothing was there. The three looked at each other, confused. But just shrugged and started to rip the fourth haunch off the carcass; meant for T. Shenzi grabbed the last haunch and Banzai and Ed grabbed the remains, before starting to rip it apart.

But then they heard low and annoyed growling. They dropped the meat and bones from their mouths and looked up at the tall grass in front of them, but didn't see anything. They looked harder, but still could make out nothing. And, for some reason, the golden-tinted grass had become…spotted? This confused the trio… until two cheetahs stepped out of the dry shrubbery.

Shenzi was terrified but kept it hidden, unlike Ed, Banzai just raised an eyebrow at them.

"Well, well, well Cheetayta, what do we have here?" Cheetahto said as he and the other cheetah started to slowly but sharply circle the trio. The trio backed away from them as much as they could, until they were back-to-back in the middle of the two large felines.

"Hmm. I say, looks to me like a trio of food-stealing hyenas." Cheetayta said.

"Um, uh, we didn't know it was yours; we were just walkin' along and uh, your kill just happened to be in our way." Shenzi falsely explained with a forced smile on her face, her eyes darting back and forth to keep track of their movement. The cheetahs, ignoring her justification, continued to encircle the hyenas.

"Well, now that we've lost our kill, what do you suppose we do for food now, Cheetahto?" Cheetayta asked his companion.

"Hm, it seems to me the carcass _was_ quite large." Cheetahto began.

"And tastey." Banzai smirked. Shenzi bonked him on the head to keep him from saying anything else that could get them killed.

"So large, that it rather exhausted us trying to get it." The cheetah went on.

"Indeed; it would take some fine hunters to hunt down our next meal." Cheetayta stated. Shenzi's eyes widened as she realized what the two felines were getting to.

"Look, I know we may have cost ya both a lunch, but you two can't just make us hunt down more food when there's a drought approachin'!"

"They want us ta what?!" Banzai and Ed's eyes widened at this absurd array.

"The heck if I'm gonna go get lunch for a couple a-" Banzai was cut off when the two cheetahs began growling again.

"Somethin' tells me we don't have a choice." Shenzi replied.

_A few minutes later…_

Shenzi, Banzai and Ed were hiking through more rugged terrain than they were used to; this was generally cheetah's hunting territory due to being comprised of lots of trees with scrawny branches, high-leveled rocks, and plains to match the predator's fur. And with Cheetahto and Cheetayta at the rear of them it didn't make things any easier. Shenzi scowled when she heard one of them grumbling under his breath.

"Hey, we don't like it either. But you're the ones who made us hunt. And it we can't do it any faster so either tol'rate it, or let us go."

"Finally, she starts gettin' pushy with 'em." Banzai mumbled in a low tone. Ed, who was beside him, was the only one who heard. Cheetayta, the one who growled, stepped forward.

"Perhaps you three don't understand the position you're all in. You're indebted to us and until you repay that debt, you must abide by what we tell you."

"And what if we don't want to?" Banzai scowled. Shenzi slapped her paw against her muzzle; this could not end well now. And Banzai soon realized the error of his statement when both cheetahs narrowed their eyes. The trio gazed down and realized the feline's claws were pointing in their direction. The hyenas gradually backed away from the duo of cheetahs…before whirling around and racing away from them. Both cheetahs rolled their eyes.

"Always wanting to run, aren't they?" Cheetahto said.

"Pointless, the entire endeavor." Cheetayta added, before the two of them pursed the hyenas, and barely even trying at that. After all, they were cheetahs; it wouldn't be that hard catching up with them, and they could go up to 60 mph in nearly 2 seconds.

Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed glanced behind them and saw the two cheetahs quickly covering ground. The duo jumped up and reached their non-retracting claws out at the hyenas in front of them. The trio felt the air knocked out of them as they were slammed to the ground, the impact sending them rolling a few feet.

They clumsily tried to get to their feet as they struggled to bring their eyes back into focus. But didn't have much time as the two cheetahs smacked their paws into the side of their faces. They were knocked a few more feet away, landing face-first into the dirt. They shook their heads from the impact and their eyes widened when they saw the cheetahs slowly closing in. This was it, the circle of life was about to claim its three newest victims.

"Hey!" Came a voice from out of nowhere. Cheetahto and Cheetayta looked confused, however, Shenzi, Banzai and Ed's eyes widened; they knew that sound. The trio of hyenas and the duo of cheetahs looked behind them to see T glaring at her friend's adversaries.

"Young lady, I believe this is none of your concern." Cheetahto said.

"Yes. And we suggest you leave before you receive the same fate as these three." Cheetayta warned.

"Don't think so. You two are about to use that super speed of yours ta run away from me with your tails between your legs!" T replied.

"Clever words for such a young hyena." Cheetahto stated.

"Indeed. What do you say we find out Cheetahto?" Cheetayta added.

They turned around to face T. Now Shenzi allowed her fear to show and nipped at their heels to try to divert their attention from the younger female. But Banzai and Ed stopped her before she could go after the cheetahs; they didn't want to lose their other friend.

"Young?! In hyena years I'm 19!" T said. Of course the two cheetahs didn't believe her, for her voice still sounded like that of an adolescent. Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed knew this was true though.

"Besides why do you wanna eat those three anyway? All that meat at once is bad for you." She finished.

"Eat them?!" The cheetahs exclaimed.

"Eat us?!" The three other hyenas echoed, in equally stunned tones. She seemed puzzled.

"Yes. …I-isn't that what you were planning on doing?" The cheetahs glanced at each other before cackling at her theory and the trio, despite having almost been killed, were holding back laughter as well.

"Perhaps we should spare the other three Cheetahto; she's certainly a credit to their species." Cheetayta stated.

"Indeed." Cheetahto agreed. And without another word both cheetahs left them, ongoing their hilarity as they did. T hung her head, letting her bangs cover her face as she stared at the ground. Making sure the cheetahs were out of view first, the trio walked up to their humiliated clan member. Shenzi patted her on the back.

"Eh don't feel so embarrassed T; ya really saved our tails back there." Shenzi said. Banzai and Ed nodded.

"Yeah, even though ya managed ta look like a total greenhorn while ya did, the effort's still appreciated." Banzai added. T blew some of her bangs out of her face, causing them to cover one of her eyes, as she brought her head halfway back up.

"Thanks." She sarcastically replied; even T knew she had a long way to go before she achieved full-fledged Kenyan status. Plus it would take some time to branch off from her roots, which only made it more difficult.

There was an awkward silence, before Shenzi finally spoke up.

"Let's uh, let's go home." She said. And the four hyenas turned to go back.

* * *

CHAPTER 1 IS FINALLY EDITED AND CHAPTER 2 IS RIPE FOR THE READIN'!


	2. Aunt Lakeisha and Uncle Shomari

Here's some of the OC's I was talking about:

**Lakeisha**-T's aunt. Her name means "favorite one" .

**Shomari**-T's uncle. His name means "forceful" .

Also in this chapter T's real name is revealed. But after you all find out what it is, I hope you'll still think of her as T. 'Cause that's still what I'll be calling her.

Enjoy it!

* * *

The four hyenas walked on for awhile until Shenzi unexpectedly stopped.

"Oh wait I forgot; there's a waterbuck haunch back there we got ya for lunch." She told T, pointing in the direction behind her from where they came.

"I'll go get it. You guys can meet me back at the cave." T stated, turning to get it.

"I dunno." Shenzi was a bit unsure.

"Yeah what if those cheetahs are still hangin' around?" Banzai queried. Ed nodded his head in agreement.

"If they are they'll probably be too busy laughing to even notice me." She replied. Ed giggled quietly, knowing it was cruel but, at the same time, it was also funny; plus, he could be a bit cruel at times, heck he _was_ cruel at times. But that didn't mean he didn't care about T. Although Shenzi and Banzai thought the same way, they were trying to hold back laughter as well. T was not the oblivious type and raised an eyebrow at her friends but just let them get it out of their systems without saying a word. Finally the trio had managed to calm down at Shenzi looked at T.

"Alright go on then. But if you ain't back at the cave in _five minutes,_ we're gonna hunt you down like those cheetahs hunted that waterbuck." She warned. T nodded before turning around and running back to find the carcass.

After she was out of sight, the trio made their way back to their cave, passing the pridelands along the trek. They saw Simba and Nala, the royal couple and rulers of Priderock, but paid no mind to them or their unpredictable meerkat and warthog.

About a few more minutes, the hyena trio finally made it back to their home… but were not pleased at what they saw.

"Who the heck are they?" Banzai whispered to Shenzi. There in front of their cave, were two hyenas lurking near the entrance. And they didn't look like members of their clan either. Casting each other wary glances, the three made their way over to the unfamiliar hyenas.

"Can we help you two?" Shenzi asked once she, Banzai, and Ed reached the two. The couple of hyenas' heads sharply turned at hearing her. They appeared shocked upon seeing them for some reason, but after a quick moment, the female mustered the fortitude to speak up.

"We're not looking for any trouble," she began, trying to hide her uneasiness, "we just want to find someone."

"Find someone?" The trio echoed.

"Yes, erm, we came here on our way to the northern parts of Africa to get to the herds. As you may already know, the drought has made it difficult to find food." The male cut in.

"So why ya hangin' around _our_ cave? This ain't a rest stop y'know." Banzai stated, rather petulantly.

"Our apologies. It's just that when we arrived on these lands, we thought we could pick up the scent of someone we know. We followed the scent, and it led us to your home." The female stated. The trio however, were skeptical; the only thing they thought the trespassing couple smelled was the animal blood from their past meals now stained on the cave floor, and believed the two had intentions of stealing their food. Shenzi wanted these two off her lands ASAP; a scowl threatened to breach onto her features but, being a powerful matriarch, she was used to holding back emotion and kept her cool.

"Well who is it you're lookin' for?" She demanded impatiently; if there was anything she hated on her land, it was trespassers.

"Have any of you ever met a female hyena named Tana?" The female asked.** (A/N** pronounced Tah-nah)

"Tana…" The three pretended to look in thought.

"Tana…Tana…nope, never heard of 'er." Shenzi and Banzai replied as Ed shook his head.

"Now, you two'll just be movin' along outta my lands now." Shenzi lightly commanded as she waved her paw in the direction of the border of her territory.

"Wait!" The couple echoed. At this point the trio were becoming more irritated by the minute.

"What?" Shenzi and Banzai's voices nearly came out as growls.

"She sometimes goes by a different name." The female told them.

"Yes, er, what was it…?" The male pondered. For a second time, the three hyenas were skeptical of these newcomers. And if the two didn't get out of their clan's territory soon, they were going to MAKE them get out.

"Oh yes, I remember it now!" The female finally said.

"As do I!" The male stated. The trio merely gave each other dubious glances.

"I believe she calls herself-" The female began.

"T." The couple said in unison.

The trio's eyes widened as their jaws dropped to the ground.

* * *

T lugged the waterbuck haunch away from the carcass, already being inspected by the flies and surveyed by a number of vultures circling above. As she hauled the meal back to her new home, thoughts whirled around in her mind.

"_Eating them. Of __course__ they weren't gonna eat them. I'm so new to this place the __smell__ of my old home hasn't even rubbed off yet. I'm just going to have to adapt, and quick, to the fact that things around here aren't run the same as they are back in-"_

Her ears suddenly perked up as a familiar sound reached her; it was the summoning call of Shenzi's clan, meaning all hyenas who were in that clan had to report back home immediately if they already weren't. Her eyes widened and she managed to grab the haunch in the middle, in order to suitably balance it in her rush to get back. As the "whoop"-ing sounds grew louder, T bolted in the direction as fast as she could go.

_A few minutes later…_

"Guys, I'm back!" T announced as she reached the cave where she lived with Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. Having seen T was back, the hyenas who had been ordered by their leaders to call out for her, went about their regular business.

"Could ya come back here a sec?" She heard Shenzi's voice call from inside the cave. Puzzled but all the same obedient, T picked up the haunch she had placed at her feet when she called out to them, and walked inside the cave.

"What?" She asked through the haunch in her mouth as she looked at her friends who were sitting on one side of the cave. The trio opened their mouths to speak but before they could get so much as a word out the two hyenas blocked them from T's view as they shouted,

"Tana!"

T's eyes widened, and her jaw dropped, causing the haunch to fall to the dirt.

"You know these two?" Shenzi asked her.

"Aunt Lakeisha! Uncle Shomari! What are you doing here?!" The 19 year-old female was completely surprised.

"I'd say that's a 'yes'." Banzai whispered to his matriarch.

"That's a question we really should be asking _you_." Lakeisha replied to her niece's question, she and her husband approaching her.

"And how did my little niece get all the way to Kenya?" Shomari asked her, grinning. T opened her mouth to reply but she did not, or _could not_, say anything, which the trio found strange. But after a few seconds of taking a good look at Shomari, they alleged that there was something about his mood towards his niece that they found…odd. Until they suddenly remembered the question he had asked her.

"All the way? T, where exactly are you from?" Shenzi asked.

"Yeah, and what's with the whole 'Tana' thing?" Banzai added. Ed just nodded his head. T's eyes shifted left to right, almost appearing to stall her answer.

"Oh, she never did like that name." Lakeisha stated.

"But without a doubt I think it suited her." She finished.

"Calling me 'Tana' is the same as calling me stupid." T's voice was almost a growl.

"So your parents chose to give you an eccentric name-"

"YOU TWO chose to give me an eccentric name!" She cut her uncle off.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! So, lemme get this straight; your real name isn't T. It's Tana. And apparently, from what you're all yellin' about, that means stupid, right?" Shenzi asked.

"In my old clan it does." T replied. Shenzi raised an eyebrow at her while Banzai and Ed exchanged confused glances.

"Ok, bahfore this gets anymore complicated, I think you better start tellin' us everythang; startin' with that name 'a yours." The Kenyan matriarch told her.

"Actually before this matter goes any further I'd like to speak with the matriarch and second-in-command of this clan." Lakeisha stated.

"You're lookin' at 'em." Shenzi and Banzai replied. T's aunt and uncle's eyes widened.

"Oh um, well then," Lakeisha cleared her throat and tried to look presentable, "as you may have heard from my niece, I'm matriarch Lakeisha and this is my mate Shomari, second-in-command, and we are both the leaders of our clan."

"I'm Shenzi, he's Banzai. We ain't mates, but we lead our clan too." Shenzi replied. At that, Shomari's eyes grew wide and he directed his attention to the Kenyan second-in-command.

"You're Banzai?" He asked.

"_…_Yeah." Banzai replied, a bit little puzzled at why Shomari had seemed to ask that question with a bit of fascination. A strange, somewhat eerie smile grew on T's uncle's face.

"Interesting." He stated.

"Anyhow, we traveled quite a ways to get here from our home." Lakeisha stated.

"Which is where?" Shenzi asked.

"_I'll_ tell ya that." T said. She took a deep breath, before looking them directly in the eye.

"OK, so my real name's Tana and yes it does mean 'stupid'…in the, _South African_ hyena clan's dialect." She admitted. The trio stared at her for a moment…before rolling onto their backs with hysterical laughter.

"Stupid?!" They said, looking at her, and only laughed harder.

"Ya see that's why I changed my name!" T yelled over their hilarity. She disgustedly jerked her head to look in another direction while her "friends" blew off some comical steam. Eventually, the trio calmed down and looked at her again.

"So, where are you _really_ from? 'Cause you _can't_ be a native to South Africa, that's over 2,000 miles away." Shenzi stated.

"Well I am." T shrugged. The trio's eyes widened.

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Banzai said, "you're tellin' us, that you're one a' those stuck-ups from the southern parts?!" **(A/N** No offense to any South African readers who are reading this story, it's just how they're portrayed from a hyena's POV)

"I _am_ South African but I'm not stuck-up. If ya wanna go talk to a stuck-up South African hyena you can go talk to the rest of my family. …If they're not all dead that is." T finished.

"Not exactly." Lakeisha and Shomari cut in.

"What?" The four hyenas echoed.

"Along with us, most of the clan _did_ survive the human attack." The South African matriarch stated.

"Everybody else thinks _you're_ dead." Shomari said.

"Yes, everyone thought you shared the same fate as your parents." Lakeisha finished. At the mention of that particular event, which T had the pleasure of witnessing firsthand, her ears drooped back in melancholy as her eyes shifted to the ground.

"Didja have to bring _that_ up?" Shenzi told them, as if standing up for her friend.

"But we _are_ glad to see you so alive and well." Shomari grinned at his niece once more. T didn't say a word; she seemed…frozen, in fear of something as she just stared at her uncle. Ed, much like Shenzi and Banzai, usually wasn't one to trust "his" kind of judgment. However, something didn't feel right whenever Shomari would look at T in that way, or better yet, whenever he looked at her at all, and the third-in-command male didn't like it.

"And I'm sure the rest of the clan would be glad to see her too." His wife added.

"What?" The trio echoed.

"Whaddya mean?" T asked.

"Well, there _is_ room for one more hyena in the clan." Her aunt replied. T's eyes widened; as did her friends'.

"You wanna take me back?" She said.

"Well you are missed back in South Africa. And I believe keeping you safe at home is what your parents would want, don't you agree?" Lakeisha asked.

"Well, I don't really know. Ya see I'm kind of settled in here." T replied.

"If you like, we could give you some time to think about it. You could even spend a little alone time with each of us for a bit of…catching up." Shomari smiled. T seemed uneasy.

"Now hold on one second." Shenzi intervened. T silently thanked heaven in her mind after her friend spoke up.

"Who says we're gonna just hand 'er over? She's a member of _this_ clan now, and that's how it's gonna stay. But since you two obviously had such a busy schedule to fork off of, we'll let ya go to the northern parts like you were plannin'. And if ya like, I'll have a few of my other clan members see ya to the border." The matriarch said.

"Well forgive me if I seem a bit uncalled for, but-"

"I have an idea Lakeisha," Shomari cut his mate off, "why not just let Tana decide who she wants to go with?"

At this, Shenzi impalpably smirked; obviously knowing what choice T would make. After all, the Kenyan clan had taken her in while her health was in such critical state. Of course she would've had some history with the South African clan but unless T still had a few close relations back in origin, which from the way she acted didn't seem likely, she'd stay here in Kenya.

"You have to call me T now." Came a voice that interrupted Shenzi's thoughts. She looked to see T staring assertively at her aunt and uncle.

"I'm over 16; I'm an adult, and I have the authority to change my own name if I want to." She finished.

"You aren't an adult unless you're at least 20." Lakeisha told her.

"Not if you live in this clan." Shenzi corrected the other matriarch.

"Well pardon my objection but she's _native_ to our clan. Therefore I think our laws are more binding to her."

"Well pardon my objection but _I think you best respect __my__ laws before I bind my paw to your face._"

"Did you just threaten my mate?" Shomari growled. Banzai instinctively got in front of Shenzi as an aggressive expression came upon his face.

"So what if she did?" He growled back.

"Stop!" T shouted to discontinue the argument between her best friends and her family. All eyes turned to her. The female hyena blew her bangs out of her eyes before replying,

"I'll tell ya my answer first thing tomorrow." Hopefully that would calm things down a bit and fortunately it did; Lakeisha and Shomari eventually backed down, as did Shenzi and Banzai.

"Well then, now that that's settled, I suppose we'll see you tomorrow, Ta-" Lakeisha stopped what she was saying when a warning growl from Shenzi told her she'd better say,

"Erm, I mean, T." And without another word she and Shomari left the cave, Shomari stealing a glance at his niece before exiting with his wife. T let out a silent breath of relief; at least it could've gone worse.

* * *

_That night…_

T awoke in the middle of her slumber, in the same spot in the cave she had since leaving the Elephant Graveyard, to see Banzai and Ed more out of it than a couple of logs. And as for Shenzi, she was…wait a minute, where _was_ Shenzi?

Deciding to figure that out, she quietly rose from her sleeping spot and noiselessly snuck past her two bunkmates, before reaching a part of the cave you could climb up to reach the roof. T had always found this feature of the cave very interesting, unlike Shenzi who (seemingly nonchalantly) had once asked her exactly what she found so great about it.

"Because you could look at the stars at night if you wanted to." T had answered.

"Why the heck would ya wanna do that?" Shenzi replied.

" 'Cause it's fun. …Haven't you ever looked at the stars before?" Shenzi appeared silent at her question, before answering,

"Once."

That memory made T smile; even though she tried to hide it, as did Banzai and Ed, T knew there just _had_ to be something decent in there, even if it chose to stay within the safety of the being possessing it.

_Meanwhile…_

Shenzi laid down on the roof of the cave, staring at the dotted sky as she thought about what happened today; T's aunt and uncle, whom thought she was dead, as she thought they were, had wondered right into _her_ territory and were suddenly wanting her to come back with them to their clan. The nerve of those two!

A lot of things were whirling around in her expanded mind; her friend's origin, her sudden change in behavior…and then another thought came to Shenzi: T's real name. The Kenyan matriarch had always wondered who'd use a letter to name their kid, but now it all made sense.

She could certainly see why T had decided to disown her real name; who in their right mind would name a child 'stupid'? Especially one as bright as T. Better yet, why would the _parents_ of the child, allow the _aunt and uncle_ to name it, didn't they have rights to their own pup?

In addition to all that, the whole not-an-adult-until-you're-20 thing explained T's occasional childlike, trusting behavior. But otherwise she behaved like a regular, 19 year-old female hyena.

And then, something else hit Shenzi; for some reason, T acted fairly peculiar around her uncle. She began pondering on why her friend would act this way, until a voice called out to her.

"Shenzi?" The matriarch sat up to see T standing a few feet away. Upon seeing it was only her, she laid back down.

"What're you doing up here?" T asked as she lay beside her.

"Thinkin'." Shenzi replied.

"About what?"

"Eh, the typical." T smiled; no matter what time of day/night/year, it seemed Shenzi was always busy. She looked up at the stars illuminating the darkened sky.

"I guess this counts as your second time of looking, huh?" T asked, Shenzi didn't reply.

"So…anything new with you?" She asked after a moment.

"Well my friend's aunt n' uncle showed up outta nowhere today and now they wanna steal 'er away from my clan in case you're interested." Shenzi replied cynically.

"…Right. So…do you _want_ me to go?" Shenzi rolled over so the two were facing.

"Do _you _wanna go?" T stared at her forepaws.

"…I dunno." She finally replied.

"Why not?"

"…I just don't."

"…Whaddya mean ya 'just don't'? It's gotta be _something_. What is it? Family problems, old grudges, past events similar to that thing that happened this afternoon?" Shenzi asked. T heaved out a breath.

"Looked pretty bad back there, didn't I?" She put on a small smile

"Eh, it was only a couple 'a cheetahs. And we can't look any worse to 'em anyway. …So, whatcha gonna do if ya _are_ goin' back tomorrow?"

"Pick up where I left off I guess."

"And I guess me n' the other two'll just have to adjust to the way things were."

"Oh you guys could always visit-"

"Right, like me n' the boys are gonna go all the way down to South Africa every free weekend." Shenzi sarcastically replied. T glanced to her right; she had a point there.

"I dunno _what_ to do." She admitted. Shenzi was in thought for a moment.

"Well, is there a _reason_ you don't wanna go back?" She saw T's eyes instantly shift away and knew she had found the chink in the armor, but all the same acknowledged the frightened expression on her friend's face and (making sure no one was looking first) gently reached out and placed her paw on her friend's shoulder.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Uh…nothing."

"It don't look like nothing." T sighed; once again, Shenzi caught her. She swallowed a lump forming in her throat, before saying,

"Well… Ya see, it's like this, back where I used to live-"

"Shenzi? T?" Came a voice echoing from beneath them, accompanied by a manic laugh. The two female hyenas realized Banzai and Ed must've woken up and saw they were missing.

"We'll be there in a minute!" Shenzi yelled to him. This seemed to satisfy the males because the two didn't hear any more disorder below. Shenzi looked back at T.

"Ok now."

"…Y'know I…I…" For some reason T had changed her mind about telling her.

"You, what?"

"…I guess my old clan should at least know I'm ok." T finished. Shenzi's eyes widened, before she took in a deep breath, and laid on her back; once again _used_ to holding in her emotions.

"So…you're leaving?" Shenzi said.

"…Yeah." Was all T said back.

* * *

_The next day…_

T watched her aunt and uncle, who were a few feet outside the cave, as she fretfully waited for Banzai and Ed to wake up. Shenzi, who had been long awake, was becoming impatient.

"Let's just wake 'em up now; by the time they get up the drought'll be over." She said, before whacking them both upside their craniums. Instantly the two males jumped out of their sleep, crying out in pain from the impact. Banzai rubbed the spot where Shenzi had hit him as he looked at her.

"What was that for?!" He demanded.

"Just wanted to make sure you'd be able to say goodbye to our old clan-mate is all." Shenzi innocently replied. Banzai and Ed were stunned; they looked back to see T shyly smiling at them near the exit. Ed seemed…almost close to tears, at this report; one of his bulbous eyes was starting to twitch. Banzai managed to keep his cool though, even if he wasn't exactly thrilled about her leaving either.

"So, you're goin' with them." Banzai stated. T nodded. The male raised an eyebrow at her, before waving his paw in dismissal and neutrally saying,

"Have fun."

Ed, who felt a lump starting to form in his throat, wanted to hug her goodbye but for some reason this frightened him. So he just slowly waved his paw in farewell. T sent a smile towards his way that made the male's fur raise on the back of his neck.

"Excited about goin'?" Shenzi scathingly asked.

"Well, I don't exactly know what to expect for one. But I have learned one thing from staying back home: never say 'no' to Uncle Shomari." T replied as she rubbed the back of her neck.

For a second time since her family had arrived, Ed grew a bad feeling in his gut about this Shomari male; he also couldn't help but feel that T was keeping something from them about her old life. Shenzi also became suspicious, and started wondering if T really _was_ going of her own free will. But she kept her appearance emotionless as she stared at the younger female; who would soon, be nothing but a foreign clan member.

"I hope most of your clan ain't dead." Was all she said, before walking to the back of the cave, Banzai followed. Ed, still wishing he could say more to T but couldn't, tried not to look at her as he went after them.

"Tana, we're waiting!" Came a female voice from outside the cave. T cast one last glance back at her friends who had now disappeared into the back of their home, no longer her home, before sighing and then saying,

"Goodbye." To no one in particular, before leaving the cavern. Her send-off fell on listening ears that would not speak.

* * *

"The clan really hasn't changed all that much since you left it." Lakeisha stated as the three hyenas walked through some plains a few miles away from the Pridelands. T was walking in the middle of her aunt and uncle as she listened to them talk, not really participating in the conversation though.

"And we didn't lose all that many hyenas to the humans either." She went on.

"Your cousin is next in line for matriarch you know. And Havana's been doing a stupendous job of learning to take over the clan." Her aunt finished.

"Great." T lightly stated, pretending to be included in the discussion.

"How many hyenas did we lose?" She asked, both wanted to seem interested in their talk and wanting to know how much of a loss it was.

"I'd say around 18; including your parents. Didn't really make much of a difference." Shomari replied.

"_Maybe not to you two."_ T mentally spoke.

"So uh, how long did it take you guys to reach Kenya?" She asked her aunt and uncle.

"About two weeks. There were times we sprinted though." Lakeisha replied. T looked up at the sky; she had been traveling with her aunt and uncle all day, and by this time the sun was already looming over the horizon. The sky was darkening to the night, and the shadowing effect of dusk had tinted the plains a bluish-purple. T's attention was quickly brought away from her surroundings, when she felt something caressing her cheek. She glanced over to see her uncle giving her a nuzzle.

"Well I'd say it's about time to call it a night. You should get some rest too Tana." He smiled. T slowly sidestepped him and walked to a grassy area a few feet away from the couple.

"I'll see over here. You two've probably been so busy you haven't gotten a lot of alone time." She falsely excused. Her uncle seemed a bit piqued but when Lakeisha started nuzzling him he merely laid down in another grassy area beside her.

T sighed in relief after the couple had dozed off. She had a lot of memories about her old home, and wasn't about to relive them firsthand. She rolled onto her back so she was gazing up at the night sky; the stars were beginning to reveal themselves.

T remembered the little talk she had with Shenzi last night, and shuddered at the thought that she almost told her why she didn't exactly want to go. But if she had even let the slightest thing slip, Shenzi, Banzai or Ed would start asking questions and that would bring back some old moments T would not want to revive.

She sighed again as she looked up at the night sky; wondering what Shenzi, Banzai and Ed were doing right now.

* * *

The 3rd chapter's ready when you are!


	3. Some Familiar Faces

In case any of you are wondering, T's aunt's not really a danger to her (I figured most of you have probably already assumed what issues she has with her uncle), she's just terribly, strict/unfair/a total pain in the a--. You'll learn to love 'em both later on. (Sarcasm back there)

* * *

"Wake up Tana." Came a voice in the darkness. T groaned as she rolled over on her back; she hadn't heard actual words, but she did hear a voice and figured it was probably just Ed wanting someone to talk to since Shenzi and Banzai were still sleeping, and both hit him if he tried to wake them up.

"Just go back to sleep, k? I'll be up in a few minutes. …You can lie down beside me and wait if ya want." She added, knowing how clingy the male could be. There was a moment of silence, before a paw was placed on her neck, catching her off guard.

"As you wish." Came a voice T now realized was not exactly friendly. She quickly opened her eyes and looked up to see she was staring her uncle Shomari right in the face. Instantly she bolted to her feet.

"Uncle Shomari! Uh, what're you doing here…all alone…?" T uneasily asked after observing their surroundings.

"Oh just waking you up. Glad to see you're so eager this morning." He stated. Her eyes began darting around.

"Where's aunt Lakeisha?" She asked, taking a few steps back from him.

"Right here." Came a muffled voice behind her. T looked back to see her aunt with three, dead, medium-sized birds in her mouth. She dropped them to the ground.

"Eat up; we all have to keep our strength if we want to return home on schedule." She said.

"Didn't you say you were headed north to get to the herds?" T asked as her uncle began eating one of the winged animals.

"Yes but with one more mouth to feed it may make things difficult." Lakeisha replied.

"Actually I've learned to hunt pretty well up in Kenya compared to how I used-"

"I'd rather not take that chance." Her aunt cut her off. T seemed a bit offended.

"Now eat."

"She's right." Shomari cut in.

"You do need to keep your strength up, _T_." He finished. T involuntarily shuddered; usually, she liked it when everyone referred to her by her nickname, but hearing it on his voice, sent chills up her spine.

"And once you have your energy back, I'd _love_ to see some of those skills you learned." That comment only made it worse. T made no reply as she hastily ate her share of the food so her guard wouldn't be sidetracked. Maybe telling Shenzi the truth wasn't such a bad idea after all…

For the rest of the trip T didn't really speak that much, and she tried to stay on her aunt and uncle's good sides at all costs. But finally, after what seemed like forever, she heard the three words she'd been dying to hear since the day this trip started.

"We're almost there." Her aunt said.

* * *

_Back in Kenya..._

Ed yawned as he woke up in his sleeping spot in the cave and got up to his feet. He looked over at the spot near his…no T.

Why was this bothering him so much? Shouldn't he be happy? She was going back home, with her aunt and her…uncle…her strangely affectionate uncle. Making sure Shenzi and Banzai, who were staring out of the mouth of the cave, weren't looking and couldn't hear from this distance, he slowly reached his paw over and placed it in the spot where she used to sleep, letting a slight whimper escape.

Shenzi's ear twitched in his direction but she didn't say a word. Not like she wasn't feeling the same though; T was the first actual female she could really talk to, and the _only_ female who, like herself, enjoyed doing things that weren't exactly common for other females to do; hunting, wrestling, getting dirty, etc. Shenzi had never really talked to other female pups when she was younger, they all seemed so afraid of her because of her matriarchal status…except for Monifa but she was a different story, plus she was long banished from the clan.

Banzai looked over to his friend and didn't exactly like what he saw; even though Shenzi was a strict, commanding, and occasionally griping leader, she had her good side, and Banzai was the only one she'd ever reveal it in front of. Even though none of them would admit it, they were all missing T. For what reason, they didn't know.

Shenzi took a good look at the sun's position in the sky, before heaving a breath of disgruntlement.

"Well, breakfast ain't gonna get itself." She stated. Banzai and Ed followed her out of the cave to get what food there was in the land's current serious, but hopefully temporary, crisis.

* * *

It was a few more miles before T could recognize anything familiar about their surroundings. And also before she could actually make out any signs of a hyena clan on the other side of a grassy hill up ahead. But the unquestionable, although faint, sounds of hunting calls and "whoop"-ing sounds in the air became louder and louder with every step the group took in the knoll's direction.

"Welcome back." She heard her aunt and uncle say.

_A few minutes later..._

"No way! She's alive?!"

"Impossible!"

"She ain't mortal!"

These, and many other comments similar to this, were among what T heard upon setting foot back in her original clan.

"Yes, she is very much alive." Lakeisha stated.

"Well where's she been all this time?!" Another overly excited hyena asked, its just as eager brethren wanting to know the same.

"Found her boarding with three hyenas from another clan." Shomari replied.

"Another clan? But you'd be an outsider. How'd you not get killed?" Another fervent hyena inquired. T opened her mouth to reply, until more questions erupted from the crowd. How did she survive? How did she come across that clan? How did she manage to board with three complete strangers?

"Alright, alright that's enough!" Her aunt cut in, silencing the crowd to only a few muffles. The South African matriarch then turned to her niece.

"Tana, since you need a place to stay for the night until we can scrape something up, you'll be sharing a den with your cousin."

"WHAT?!" Came an angry voice deep within the crowd. T looked to her left to see a young adult female hyena, about 21 years of animal age, emerge from the mass that was her clan.

"Havana, it's only temporary." Lakeisha told her.

"But mom!!" T's cousin whined.

"Havana please, try to look more matriarchal." Her mother whispered so the others wouldn't hear.

"What happened to my old den?" T cut in.

"Burned. Along with about 12 other homes. We had to make room for nearly half the clan." Her aunt explained.

"The humans kill 18 members of the clan but leave the rest of us homeless." Havana growled.

"You were left homeless?" T asked.

"_No_. But my boyfriend was, and mom and dad wouldn't let me share my den with him."

"How many times do I have to tell you; not until you're _married._ It's bad for my image." Lakeisha told her daughter.

"_Bad for __her__ image?"_ T thought.

"Um, if I could interject for a second ladies," Shomari cut in, "there's a mob growing more agitated with questions by the minute." Lakeisha sighed.

"I'll get right to it."

"I'd be happy to explain where I've been to everyone-" T began.

"No, that's ok dear. You just…go someplace else. I wouldn't want my only niece to suffer the humiliation of letting the entire clan know she lived with two unmated males for nearly three months." Havana's eyes widened at her mother's statement, before she abruptly turned her head to her cousin.

"No. Way. _You?!_ I always thought I'd be first!"

"_First to do __what__?"_ T thought again.

"_Never mind. I don't wanna know."_ She finished as she started walking in the direction away from her aunt, uncle and only cousin.

* * *

T sat on a grassy knoll as she overlooked the recuperating land that was once, and was now again, her home. Looking at the reminders of what happened that night, it was almost too much to bear; all those memories that haunted her, brought on by something as diminutive as a muddy shoeprint of a human's boot, or a leftover shell of a bullet, or the burnt grass and shrubbery struggling to restructure…or, something shiny, hidden in some weeds.

T raised an eyebrow; it looked familiar for some reason. Slowly walking over, she gently brushed away the grass and bush weeds that entangled around it. …Her eyes soon grew wide; her heart skipped a beat; her breathing became shallow.

"Oh my, gosh." Her voice whimpered as a lump grew in her windpipe. It still had her…and her father's blood long dried onto it. T started shaking. There it was, the same thing used to kill her father and wound her; that steel-bladed, engraved wooden handled, 5 inch knife.

_Flashback…_

"_Sweetheart, could you come here for a second?!" Called a familiar female voice. T raised her head from the meal she had just gotten for everyone and looked back to see her mother and father, side-by-side, waiting patiently for her. She smiled and began walking over to them._

_This place wasn't perfect, far from it actually, but T was glad no matter what, she could still rely on her mom and dad to comfort her when needed. …At least until she turned 20, then she could have her own life. Possibly quite some ways away from this place. If she could, she'd bring both them with her too._

_Her cousin was busy fixing her mane while her aunt lectured some poor defenseless hyena as her uncle slacked off under the shade of a nearby rock. The others were either enjoying the meal, or going about their regular business. Some however, mostly the elders or pups of the clan, were turning in for it was late evening._

_She was quite a few feet from her parents but was in hearing range so she opened her mouth to speak, until-_

_BANG!!_

_Every single hyena stopped what they were doing and looked up to where it had come from, most frozen in place; as if sensing something was wrong. It sounded like the cracking of thunder, and the echo sounded of a lion's roar._

_BANG!!_

_This time it was closer. T's gaze was fixed upon a hill on the edge of her territory; whatever it was, the noise was coming from there. Then, without warning, some pairs of bright lights charged from over the horizon; all the adult hyenas began shouting and fleeing into their homes. Lakeisha, Shomari, and Havana all darted towards their den, not bothering to tend to the other members of the clan._

_The scene was a panic; everywhere you looked a creature was running for its life. For what reason though? Before she could think of an answer, T saw her father, soon followed by her mother, spring forward before shoving her with great force._

"_What's wrong?!" T asked over the uproar._

"_Get moving!!" He yelled. T didn't know what to do, but once her father pushed her again her paws seemed to take over her entire body and she was running alongside both of them. From behind, she thought she could hear a strange growling sound, but not like any other animal she'd heard before._

_Then, T saw something she'd never want to see again in her life._

_BANG!!_

_A hyena fell to the ground, and it didn't get up. What's worse, it was her own mother._

"_Mom!!" She turned to go to her, but her father quickly blocked the way and pushed her once more._

"_Keep running! Don't look back!" He said before rushing back to her. T was frozen in place as her eyes locked on her father sprinting towards her mother. He desperately tried to get her back to her feet but it seemed to be all in vain; her chest tightened when she saw the pleading look on her father's face…right before a frightened expression appeared when she saw some strange thing slam some sort of mobile prison onto her father._

_It, the prison, was shaped cubically and looked as if it was made of straight, rock vines. And the thing that trapped her father, walked on two legs, had a rather plump build, and had strange brown-looking fur. Except for these pink areas on his lower back legs, his forearms, and his head, which had a small area of red fur at the top._

_T was confounded by this creature's bizarre appearance…or at least she __would've__ been, if she wasn't fuming mad. She charged straight at the whatever it was, and brutally pounced on it. She was surprised at how it managed to keep its ground, but immediately set to viciously biting and clawing at it. From its scent though, T found out it was a male. This didn't really matter to her, and despite her father's constant protesting to get away she continued her assault._

_Finally, the unknown male species, grew heavy with the scent of anger. After some light struggling, he reached to his side and pulled out a strange looking object. When T's father saw it he quickly set to attacking the male as well…a mistake; as he lunged at the threat to his daughter he felt a pain in his windpipe. T lunged her head at the being for a last attack…before looking at her father for, what would be, the last time. She saw the blood rapidly draining from his neck, his motionless body on its side of the rock floor of the prison._

_Time stopped…_

_Suddenly, T felt something running down her neck, then the familiar coppery smell of blood invaded her nostrils. She looked over and saw the male running a thorn-like object down her cheek. Instinctively, she bit into his arm as hard as she could, hearing him scream along with the sound of breaking bones._

_Then without another second to lose she did the only thing possible now; run. …And never come back._

_As she escaped though, before she left for good, another loud thunder-cracking, lion-roaring sound emitted, before a nearby twig near her head snapped in two, all by itself…_

* * *

Over time, T learned exactly what happened, and what those things were called. Those bright pairs of lights; jeeps, with headlights that could hypnotize an antelope to stand completely still. Those strange, loud sounds; guns firing, with deadly bullets to fast to be seen. Her mother never stood a chance…

And those pink things? Humans: the cause of it all.

After that, T began a long, perilous trek for an unknown destination. She hadn't the slightest idea where she was headed to, maybe she wasn't headed for anywhere at all… Maybe, she was just waiting for her death, waiting for nature to end her seemingly ruined life.

T's mother was Lakeisha's sister; her father came into the family by marriage, his origin was unknown, but Shomari and he seemed to talk on occasion. Her parents loved her very much, so to lose them so brutally, especially when they didn't deserve it, was the most awful thing that could ever happen to her in life.

Remembering all those times, T couldn't take it anymore: she broke down. Her tears caused some of the blood to be cleansed from the blade; her blood, her father's blood. Her mother and father, dead. Her life, thrown into shambles. And the others, she abandoned; she was no better than her aunt, or uncle, or cousin.

T cried even harder when she thought about all those other hyenas, at worst the pups, who could've lost their parents as well. And she abandoned them too. She was so thrown into her own despair, she didn't notice something approaching from her front.

"I think it's coming from over here." Came a voice. T raised her head up to see who had said that. Then, her eyes widened at the site of some very familiar faces.

"Tana?!" A lioness said. She appeared to be the leader of a hunting party behind her, which was just as shocked as she was. As if on instinct, T wiped the tears from her eyes and tried to look spirited; showing weakness in front of a predator, especially a higher one in the food chain, was never permitted anywhere. Not in Kenya, _or_ South Africa. She quickly cleared her throat to rid herself of the lump as well.

"You're alive?!" Another lioness cut in.

"Um, y-yeah. I'm fine." T said, although she couldn't help feeling a bit nervous, plus she felt her muscles were absolutely frozen in place. She knew these lionesses all too well; they were the ones she messed around with whenever they were hunting.

**(A/N **see chapter "T's Good Ol' and New Days" in my story, All Switched Up!)

"…It's really you?" The leader asked once more.

"Uh-huh. What's uh, what's been happenin'?" She nervously grinned. After glancing her over, like the lionesses behind her, the leader of the hunting party grew an evil grin on her face; her followers mimicking her actions.

"Oh no much. We've just been starving a lot less since you left." She said as she and the five lionesses started approaching.

"Hey…look, that was a really long time ago. A-and besides, it was only when I needed a laugh…and a meal." T knew where this was going and hoped to convince them there were other ways to get payback.

"You're a hyena! You always need a laugh and a meal!" One member of the hunting part said angrily.

"Well, I don't really think that tearing me to shreds will solve anything." T went on.

"Do you?" She asked. But just as T realized her gaffe…she was too late.

"As a matter of fact…", the leader began as she casually inspected her claws, "yes!" The four other lionesses in the party quickly leapt out of the way as their leader dove at the female hyena.

T had no time to react as the lioness extended her claws right in her direction. But right as she was about to pounce on her and violently dismember her, a grayish blur knocked the furious lioness aside. Then T saw her fiercely growling at her attacker; the two quickly lunged at each other before biting and clawing at every inch of flesh they could reach. Both of them were so tangled up and in such a blur of combat T couldn't make one from the other.

Finally, the lioness roared a cry of pain as she hurdled away from her opponent. The other four lionesses carefully observed their leader; awaiting her next move. After a moment, she let out a fierce, threatening growl, before turning in the direction she and her party came from and leaving altogether. The remaining lionesses glanced at each other, before instinctively doing the same.

T was relieved that the threat was gone, but still wondered who had come to her aid. But she didn't have to wonder for long because as soon as her rescuer turned to face her, she recognized _that_ face immediately. That kindly, warm (and not to mention handsome) face. He approached rather sheepishly, before smiling at her and saying,

"Hi uh, remember me? …I remember you."

T's eyes widened.

* * *

Next chapter's ready!


	4. First Friends Make Great First Loves

**Chapter 4:**

**Nakaki:** (Pronounced Nah-kah-kee) An alpha male from T's original clan… she's in love with him.

* * *

_Flashback…_

"_Hurry up Tana!" Called a male hyena in his mid-teens as he reached the summit of a grassy plateau. T grunted in disgust._

"_First thing I do when I turn 20 is change my stupid name!" She said as she reached halfway to where he was._

"_Ya talkin' or comin'? C'mon, I've seen tortoises that move faster!" He yelled to her with a smirk. She looked up and smirked as well._

"_You better hope I don't make it up there now!" He laughed at her idle threat. T laughed as well and quickly leapt up to a ledge near the top, but stopped to catch her breath._

"_You ok?" He asked, slightly concerned; usually she had more vigor in her._

"_Yeah; just another not-so-great hunting session. I'll get over it." T replied. He blinked and, seeing she needed help, aided her in covering the remaining distance. Once at the peak T started looking around._

"_This it?" She asked._

"_Almost." He then gently nudged her shoulder with his nose to an area up ahead, and her eyes soon grew wide at the sight of large, dazzling, floral plants. Most were pink, but a few were orange, white, or blue and entangled around vines._

"_Wow, it's beautiful." She said in awe. He laughed._

"_Thanks but, we're not there yet."_

"_Whaddya mean?" T asked._

"_Where we're headed to is what's __behind__ those." He replied. She raised an eyebrow; apparently the view was __blocked__ by the flowery undergrowth._

"_Just keep going." He assured her after seeing her reaction. They walked close enough to the vegetation for T to feel a leaf brushing against the tip of her nose, when suddenly, he cut in front of her._

"_Now uh, close your eyes." He nervously smiled. Again, she raised an eyebrow._

"_I-it's a surprise." He finished, his voice just as nervous as his facial expression. T had her uncertainties, but just slowly closed her eyes as he led her through the foliage._

"_Almost there." She heard him say. It was about a minute and a half before he said,_

"_Ok…now." His voice strained with tension. T peeled her eyes open…only to have them nearly bulge out of her head at what they beheld._

_There, right in front of the couple, was the most remarkable scene of a tropical waterfall landscape. Crystal clear water pouring from a crisp brook, which descended in a staircase-like formation down a hill, lined with soft brushes of jade grass. Some flocks of colorful birds were perched up in the branches above them, which were encircled around each other, revealing a tall skylight which leaked golden luminosity on everything._

"_Wow." She breathed._

"…_You like it?" He asked; she failed to notice him rubbing the back of his neck in slight tension._

"_It's…amazing." At that, his tenor seemed to turn slightly more confident. He walked up to her side and gazed at it with her._

"_Know what the best part is?" He asked._

"_What?" She turned her head to look at him._

"_Nobody knows about it but us." He grinned. She smiled and the two rested their heads on each other's…even though it was forbidden for young, unmated hyenas of the different genders to be alone together. Meh; let the chaperone adults worry._

* * *

T gulped; it had been five months since that day, and she remembered it well. The two of them had snuck away from the clan for some "fun", of what little could be had in this place, and venture out on their own. They figured their parents, the only ones who really mattered, wouldn't worry all that much, so they weren't agitated about being caught. Which they were after they tried to sneak back, but they didn't care.

In all her mourning and self-contempt soon after arriving however, she had forgotten about-

"Nakaki?" She gasped. He nodded in reply. T couldn't say anymore; there was a lump in her throat again. She would've never admitted it, but she had feelings for Nakaki ever since she was in her pre-teen years. Nakaki was the same age as her, friendly, a nice smile, and the only friend she ever had around here. For some reason though, T thought she could see…relief in his eyes, bordered by sadness.

"I thought you were dead." He said as he took a step forward. All T could do was slowly shake her head. Nakaki smiled and took another step forward. At this point she could feel her cheeks burning up.

"Uh…um…th-thanks, for saving me." She said.

"Where've you been all this time? I never stopped wondering about happened to you…after the, y'know…" T nodded, before smiling and replying, "I just, got a little mixed up in all the chaos; wondered some miles away from home."

"Over 2,000 to be exact." She finished under her breath. He merely smiled at her once more, but he seemed to be holding back the urge to lunge at her and embrace her tightly. T smiled back. Their little moment of serenity however, was interrupted by a pair of voices T had hoped to forget ever since she left.

"Tana's got a boyfriend!

Tana's got a boyfriend!" Her eyes widened.

"Oh no…" She said as she looked behind her. Nakaki too recognized the voices and glared in the direction they came from.

"Oh yes." He replied. Both hyenas looked behind them to see a pair of twin males, smiling rather childishly.

"…Looks like you two are still alive." T dryly stated.

"How fortunate." Nakaki rolled his eyes.

"What? Aren't you happy to see us Tana?" One of them said.

"Yeah? We figured you missed us after bein' away from home for so long." The other smirked.

These twin males by the way, were Burufan and Burutan; the trouble-making duo of the South African clan. They were slightly younger than T, about three years, and were always poking around in every bit of mischief they could find. They weren't shy about practical jokes either; and she seemed to be their favorite target for taunting and trickery. They seemed to be alike in almost every way, except for one difference on their physical features; a spot on one of their legs. Burufan, the oldest of them by two minutes, had a bold black spot on his right foreleg which Burutan, the youngest, lacked. This was so far the lone indication of which was which.

"So, how'd you get here anyway?" Burufan asked as the males began to circle around the couple.

"Yeah, we thought you were up in the great big clan in the sky with your parents." Burutan added.

"Yeah well, here she is; all safe and sound. So how 'bout giving her a break since she just got here? Besides, aren't you two a little old for pup-level taunting songs?" Nakaki stated.

"I dunno. Aren't you a little _up in ranking_ to be datin' the matriarch's _niece_? Instead of 'er daugh-" T suddenly cut Burufan off as she quickly looked at Nakaki.

"Wait, wait, wait; what do they mean 'up in ranking'?" She asked.

"Oh, yeah uh, I'm an alpha now." He explained.

"Really?! That's great!" T smiled.

"Eh, I guess it has its advantages."

Once again though the two were interrupted by the twin male hyenas, only this time they were making puckering sounds at them. At this point T began to get annoyed but Nakaki strode up to them with a sly look on his face.

"Maybe Havana should learn a little more about that warty toad in her gazelle carcass." He pretended to look up in thought. At that statement, however, the twins appeared horrified and quickly darted off from the couple. T and Nakaki laughed as they walked to another part of the plains with each other.

_That evening…_

"You became an alpha male right after the attack?" T asked.

"Yeah; they were already thinkin' about it, but after I saved another hyena from a human they made it official without a second thought." Nakaki replied. T smiled.

"Well I'm glad." The two were walking through the plains together, catching up on everything that happened after the assail and while T was in Kenya. By this time it was late evening.

The sky was purple, the grasslands were becoming affluent with nocturnal creatures, and the sun was no longer visible; just a yellow glow past the horizon as the only evidence it was ever there. Usually, all the hyenas would've settled in the second dusk fell, as Lakeisha liked to keep a solid grip on her clan with unyielding rules; including a strict curfew. So in South Africa this time was considered very late.

In Kenya however, it was a different story; many hyenas would still be wide awake, pups and elders as the only exceptions, and even _those_ groups still had some vigor at sundown. Some would even be just starting to dig into their dinner; a number of hyenas were hard workers in Shenzi's clan, despite the licentious reputation the Kenyan clan had, and many had duties to tend to until late hours.

T would always stay up late with at least one of them, usually Ed since Banzai often assisted Shenzi in matriarchal duties, and look up at the night sky and talk until the other two came back. Remembering those times, she almost missed Kenya; but nonetheless, she was home now and there was nothing she could do if she wanted to go back anyway. Besides, this shallow feeling of homesickness would probably wear off once she got used to the way things were around here again. And with Nakaki around it was definitely likely things would look up…right?

The two of them soon came to the very center of the meadow and looked up at the sky.

"Nice moon tonight." T quietly said.

"Yeah." Nakaki replied, just as timid. He blinked as he looked at the ground for a moment, before casually staring back up and asking,

"So…who exactly _were_ those three hyenas you boarded with?"

"Well…don't think I was in any kind of danger but…Shenzi, Banzai and Ed. …That Scar guy's three main hit men." She coyly replied. His head jerked in her direction; T expected as much.

"Wait, you mean the same hyenas who used to kill lions for a living?" He asked. She nodded.

"They're really not as bad as everybody makes them to be." She said as she ran her paw along the ground…before her face cracked into a smile.

"But when I told 'em they were famous all the way down here, you should've seen their faces!" She laughed.

"You told them? I heard they acted surprised when they found out you were from South Africa."

"I didn't exactly tell them where I was from, but they pretty much figured it was still far away from Kenya."

"Oh. So…really caught 'em off guard huh?"

"Yeah. Ed's jaw dropped so low his tongue was flat on the ground!" They both laughed at that; for T, it felt so good remembering those times.

"…They're really great once ya get to know 'em." She finished once the two had calmed down…before she eventually seemed a bit depressed. Nakaki seemed worried and gently touched his paw to hers.

"Ta-?" He stopped in mid-sentence when he realized what he was saying. T looked at him and smiled. He groaned a bit sheepishly and looked away before asking,

"Find that new nickname yet?"

"I'm happy to say everybody calls me T now."

"T…I like it. Really symbolizes you." He grinned. T smiled too, but couldn't help shifting her eyes to the right as more memories flooded into her head. Luckily she felt was able to catch herself in time before another unhappy look came upon her face. She looked over and smiled at her friend.

"Guess it's kind of late huh? Better be getting back to the clan."

"I'll walk you." Nakaki said as he stood alongside her. T smiled as the two strolled back together.

_That evening…_

"Hey, would you hurry up and go to sleep already?!" Havana angrily snapped at her cousin as T tried to get relaxed in the small den the two were sharing.

"Ugh, sorry." She groaned, trying out another position; by this time the lack of comfort was getting very annoying.

"I swear, the minute my mom finds even a rock for you to stay under, I'm kicking your tail outta here." The older female growled.

"Well until then I guess you'll have to get used to it, wontcha?"

"Watch your mouth around your future matriarch, _Tana_." Havana sneered, before rolling over on her side, facing away from her, and eventually falling asleep. T blinked; well, at least her cousin wouldn't be talking for another twelve hours, "beauty sleep" as she called it. After about another minute of trying to get comfortable she finally settled onto a position on her side. Before going to sleep though, she took one last glance at Havana and said,

"T."

* * *

T yawned as she peeled her eyes open when she woke up the next morning. Feeling terrible, by the way; her body felt stiff and her back was in knots. She stretched out to ease up her bones a little. Then she looked over to the opposite side of the den and saw Havana wasn't there. Not really thinking much of it, she merely exited out of it and looked outside.

Well, South Africa was in all its glamour as she had left it; sparkling dew making tiny rainbows on the open pasture, glistening beams of light beautifully descending from their angles against the clouds, and lush flora as far as the eye could see.

Pridelanders would be surprised to know, that the hyenas here had homes that even compared to _their_ lap of luxury. This clan knew how to make their dens a certain way to trap warm or cold air in certain seasons, make them completely waterproof, and if they wanted to, could extend their living space; South Africa had a lot of resources. Back in Kenya you had to make do with what little there was…

T sighed to herself absentmindedly and proceeded to venture further out to get reacquainted with her birthplace. Upon exiting the den though, she didn't get far when she ran into the twins again.

"Hey Tana!" Came Burufan's obnoxious tone, "Nice to see you actually sleep in now!"

"You used to always get up earlier than everybody else, even be a miss goody two paws and clean up the dens a little." Burutan snickered. T huffed and rolled her eyes.

"So, where ya goin'?" The older of the two asked.

"Get outta my way." She said irritably as she made her way past them; not one day barely goes by and these two makers of mischief are all ready to rudely butt into her life all over again.

"Aww, now that's no way for the matriarch's niece to act." Burutan said smugly after appearing out of nowhere; not far from his brother.

"It's the way _I_ act." T replied without stopping, a newfound tone in her voice from all that time spent with the former, more willful Graveyard hyenas.

"Well, aren't we Little Miss Headstrong." She heard one of them say, too far from them to even care; by this time she was halfway across a nearby clearing.

"If you're lookin' for Nakaki," another one suddenly spoke up, "he's gone!"

That made T falter a little, but she quickly kept her pace lest the twins be encouraged to mess with her more. Albeit she did wonder about where her puphood friend was. "Gone?" She mumbled to herself. Her thoughts were answered when one of the twins yelled after her again.

"We can take you to 'im though! He left with the huntin' parties for breakfast!" At hearing this, T realized she stopped walking. Staring at her immobile forelegs, she mentally groaned as she thought of how Burufan and Burutan would react upon seeing their shouts had stopped her. To her surprise though, they didn't even move from where they were standing when she left them. In fact when T looked up at them, Burufan was glaring at Burutan for some reason; they mumbled to each other for a moment, Burutan appeared to be apologizing for something, then the pair walked down the hill to the clearing T had stopped in.

Still wary that this could be another one of their gags, T kept her guard up. "Whadda you mean you can take me to him?"

Burufan glanced at Burutan again before replying, "Well actually, we don't really know where they are, we just know the general area. Plus, if we go we'll probably get yelled at for disturbing the hunt."

T blew a bang from her eye in exhasperation, "Well when're they gonna be back?"

"Oh, probably not 'till later." Burufan said.

"A_ lot_ later." Burutan added. Both twins were now smirking at this point. Recognizing that look, that look as identical as they were, in their eyes, T raised a brow in distrust. She shrugged and turned to continue on her way, but the twins blocked her path.

"C'mon, where ya off to?" Burutan asked.

"Why?" She demanded, now aggravated.

"We know this place so well we knew _exactly_ where to go when those humans attacked." He replied.

"You mean to your moms, with your tails between your legs?" She said skeptically.

"Now that hurt." Burufan told her. T had failed to notice his brother sneaking up behind her.

"Maybe we should teach 'er a lesson." She heard Burutan's voice close by. Looking back, she realized the two had her trapped.

"Sounds like a good idea to me." His elder sibling replied. "Maybe we should reintroduce her to that game we used to play all the time, oh what was it…?"

"Ya mean," the youngest of them began, "bath barrage?"

T stared at the two of them, awestruck at the fact that she had forgotten those words. "Bath barrage", was a game the two males used to "play" with her when she was younger. Coincidentally, it took place whenever she was bathing. The object of the game was to splash Tana constantly, until either her parents showed up to defend her, or she begged for mercy. If the latter were to happen, she would have to do a favor for the troublesome duo, and the favor varied; once she had to catch a meal for them, _then_ eat it with them; another time she was forced to groom Burufan's fur, and for some reason she caught Burutan grooming her occasionally as well, but whenever she did, he'd quickly look away sheepishly.

Frankly, she was completely surprised she'd forgotten that game at all. "Well unfortunately for you two I'm feeling particularly clean today." She interrupted.

"That's ok, we can fix that." Burufan told her. "We'd be happy to teach you not to be such a neat freak all the time."

T's eyes scanned the area for any means of escape, as she did _not_ want to spend her first day back being tormented by these two. Just then, she noticed a hardly visible path through some tall grass; it wouldn't be much, but it would work enough to slow those two down if they chased after her.

"Yeah…" She said slowly, "maybe you two should learn some things yourselves…" Promptly she directed her head to her left and pretended to be astonished at something. The twins, puzzled at her behavior, turned their heads that way as well. T smirked and quickly darted off, saying "LIKE HOW TO KEEP YOUR GUARD UP!"

She just made it onto the pathway when she heard irritated snarls from behind, and picked up the pace. "Funny," she laughed to herself, "my first day back and I'm busy trying to outrun these two."

After going as fast as her four legs could carry her, T finally arrived at the end of the path…a secluded, medium sized waterfall. Her jaw nearly dropped as she sighed and fell to the ground. "Home sweet home," she scoffed, "sure…"

Someone gasped from behind her, "You…got…fast." T raised an eyebrow as she glanced that way and nearly laughed right there when she saw the "troublesome twins", clinging to stay on all fours as they staggered into the area, half out of breath.

"Now, are we going to get along this time or do I have to get rough?" She grinned, not particularly serious.

"Real funny." Burufan coughed as he made his way over to get a drink, Burutan following suite. Seeing as how the chance of re-living her past was no long existent, the female hyena just sighed and leaned against a nearby tree.

"Just so you know," Burutan spoke up between sips, "we're not finished yet."

"I wouldn't expect anything less." She replied. She stared off into the distance, almost calmly while she took in her homeland's exotic scenery. Blinking, she said "So long as we're not being half-hostile here, ever get tired of this place?"

The duo wiped their mouths and looked back, "Huh?"

"Y'know, like it gets…boring?" She finished.

"Boring?" Burufan laughed after a pause. "Well, I'll admit it got a little uneventful while you were gone. But now that your ba-"

T tilted her head at the male when he cut off in mid sentence.

"He's right about that y'know." Came a voice from behind her. For once today, T was glad to be taken from surprise from the back. Turning around, she saw Nakaki standing near. She tilted her head again.

"Right? About what?" She asked. Nakaki smiled and shrugged, "Aww it's nothing. Are these guys giving you any trouble?" He asked, keeping his eyes on the two near the waterfall.

T shrugged, "Not as much as they used to, close though. I guess I can't really blame them for having nothing better to do."

Nakaki laughed in their direction, "Oh really?" By this time she was confused.

"Yeah, why?"

"There _were_ a lot of complaints about these two not taking their shift with the hunting party."

Taken aback, the female hyena said, "They told me they would've been yelled at for showing up!"

"Not exactly."

"What do you mean?" T asked.

"They _ditched_." Nakaki explained. "They would've been yelled at for showing up _late_."

T glanced over at the duo, who were looking away nervously.

"And the clan's not particularly happy with you two right now for not coming _again_."

"Heh, you don't say…" Burufan said as his eyes started darting around the landscape.

"Yeah, so, if I were you two, I wouldn't really be in this place. Lakeisha's sending out scouting parties for you right _now_."

"What?!" They shouted.

"Geez, the only worst thing would be if our mom was lookin' for us!" Burufan said.

"Oh, she started the whole thing." Nakaki explained. T looked back at the two just in time to see them shake, terrified, as they turned tail and ran off into nearby shrubbery. After they left, she turned her attention to perhaps the only friend she had here.

"Aunt Lakeisha only sends out scouts when something _serious_ happens. Why is this such a big deal?"

Nakaki looked away with a small smile, "It's not." T grinned at her first love's cleverness.

"And I thought those two were the only mischievous ones around here."

"Shows how long you've been gone." Nakaki chuckled playfully.

"If they weren't there why didn't you just ask me to go? I've really improved a lot with my hunting skills."

"You just seemed like you had a long trip, so I didn't wanna wake you up; figured you needed all the rest you could get."

"Why?"

Nakaki blinked for a moment, then turned to her. "It's nothing, just your aunt being typical."

"I thought so. But if she thinks I'll be broken with a little hunting lesson, she won't have much to put me through!" T smirked proudly.

"Glad to hear it. So, hungry?"

"Haven't had breakfast…" She realized. The male smiled and friendly said, "Follow me."

Nakaki led T back through the trail and past the clearing, even past her family's dens. "Nakaki where are we going?" She asked him, now slightly bewildered.

"Everyone's still a little paranoid about repercussions from the human attack, so every time we bring home kills there's a complete feeding frenzy."

"Last meal, huh?"

"So they think. Anyway, I figured we'd actually get to eat our fill if I saved a one I brought down myself just for us."

"Ok. What's for breakfast?" T asked as he removed some large leaves and long grass from over a carcass. He said nothing but smirked proudly and moved aside to reveal a nice plump antelope, keeping his eyes on her face to see her reaction; when she merely stared, he felt a little uneasy.

"It's your favorite, right?" She glanced at him in surprise. "I didn't think you'd remember."

He mentally sighed in relief, then just smiled at her and said, "Well y'know T," she could tell by his tone that he really did like her nickname, "we've been friends since we were barely weaned. So," he playfully pushed a bang from her eye, "you tell me how I _couldn't_ remember."

Suddenly a "humph!" was heard from above them. Glancing up, the couple saw a small group of female hyenas on the hill next to them, all currently glaring at T, before huffing again and walking off. She glanced at her crush again, before smirking and saying, "Maybe _they_ could've blot out your memory."

He half-smiled at her while he raised an eyebrow. "Very funny. Y'know they just like me because I'm an alpha."

"Sure it's not something else?" T tried to make her speech casual, making sure to make it look like she was busy cutting into the antelope with her claws.

"Something else?" He looked puzzled. "Like what?"

If T's face wasn't covered in fur, Nakaki could've seen how red it was turning. "Oh, nothing. Just wondering if you came up with any ideas."

"Ideas?" He smiled skeptically. "And why would I wanna come up with ideas for why a bunch of spoiled females find me attractive?"

"Well…you have a nice personality." T admitted.

Her friend blinked and looked at her seriously. "Yeah?"

She swallowed and nodded. "Yeah…"

He paused, before stepping a bit closer to her. "Like what?"

"Uh…you're nice, you're…helpful, you're…loyal, you're-" T didn't notice he'd cut off a section of antelope just for her until he carefully placed it in front of her; she looked over to see him smiling. "Eat up T."

Now she felt like there were too many butterflies in her stomach for the antelope to find room, but the still-blushing female nodded shyly and without saying another word took a bite.

Nakaki smiled again and dug in with her.

"You know…" T heard him say, stopping in her chewing to glance over. He dug his claws into the flesh, and easily cut himself a portion too, just as he looked at her again and said,

"You're pretty nice yourself, T."

T blushed again at the sound of him saying her name and, forcing the butterflies down, continued eating.

* * *

I am a very big Nakaki/T shipper (well they're my OC's y'know). Hope you liked the chapter!


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